Second hand cars - trusted places

Think pucklegas might possibly be able to advice ?

Good luck 🤞

What size car are you going for? When I buy cars I always look at autotrader, it’s probably the largest database and will give you a good idea on price and what you can get for your budget.

Things to look out for:

- MOT: I won’t even consider buying a car with less than 9 months left. Not unless they agree to put it through the MOT by the time I purchase it and fix and minors/majors that may arise

- MOT: online you can check the full history of any car by typing in the number plate on the gov website. Look for red flags or previous failures, anything more than basic jobs like tyres, brake pads, lights & winder wipers suggest at some point (depending on the age) the car hasn’t been treated well.

Service history: does it have a full service history? Not a flag tbh, but if it does, it’s suggests it’s been looked after

Parts & repairs: this as a major consideration when buying. Depending on the manufacturer, depends how expensive repairs are. Quick example, my first car was a Corsa and when MOT came around brake pads would cost £10 each and I’d get a full set of Michelin tyres for £200. My dad had a BMW m5 and I can’t remember brake pad price, but tyres were £200 each! Also consider the availability of parts, Vauxhall, Renault, Ford, BMW etc will always be easy and quick to get a hold of, not quite sure Dacia would be the same (yet).

Mileage: personally I won’t go above 60k miles and 100k is a red flag IMO.

Cam belt: you need to research/ask the owner what the cam belt is in the car. If it’s chain then you’re all good, if it’s rubber then ask whether it’s been replaced. Rubber cam belts need changing every 10 years or 100k miles, whichever is sooner. It’s a long job as they have to take the engine apart to do it and will cost you £400/500+. If it’s close/overdue to being changed, either get them to change it for asking price, knock the difference off the price or just stay away.

Test drives: look at a few cars that you like on auto trader and work out what you like outside and in. Once you’ve done this, find some local dealers who have that model and engine size you like in stock (engine size very important to get it right as it’ll drive completely different). Act interested, ask for a test drive and move on, saying you’ll think about it. This way you can go in a few cars to see which you prefer the feel of before buying, without wasting a private owners time. Always ask for a test drive even if you’re buying privately. If they say no, major red flag.

Buying the car: really look at all the details closely. Looks for scratches, knicks, bumps, tyres tread carefully. Anything that’s there that wasn’t advertised is either something to be suspicious of or a bargaining chip to lower the price.

Warranty: seems to be common if you buy from a trader these days. Usually getting 3/6 months free. A definite peace of mind.

This is everything off the top of my head, hope this helps. Happy to assist if you need anything else or want a 2nd opinion

Thanks for all the replies.

I’m willing to spend up to £1000 on the car itself. I’ve been looking on auto trader for a variety of budget cars and mostly see Corsas popping up and two of my friends had one as their first cars so that’s where I’m leaning. There just always seems to be a niggling issue - no warranty, bad dealership reviews, a “loud engine”, “rattling exhaust”, distance, too many miles etc

Look for Toyota Yaris.

At that budget you’ll probably struggle to get a decent vehicle from a decent dealership. If you go private then you might be able to get a good deal following some of the advice on here but be careful as it’s buyer beware in that territory! My first car as I said in my last post was £600 private about 14 years ago.

In fact, there’s not many about but if I had some spare cash I’d love to get one of these for sentimentality sake. My second car was a Citroen Saxo, which externally and under the bonnet are virtually identical to Peugeot 106s. Very light and as a result very nippy and fun to drive. I couldn’t recommend them any more. You could probably get one for your budget, and probably wouldn’t be too bad for maintenance costs at all!

Either way you’ll be in for some fun experiences with your first car, enjoy!

EDIT: last time I sold a car privately Auto Trader was pricey to list on so might be worth checking out Gumtree and Facebook Marketplace etc but definitely be a lot more careful with that. Either way probably worth considering in a HPI check on the vehicle to see if there are any historic nasties and the car is a bit too good to be true.

Hi MB I work at My Garage doing their marketing and other things we have a good selection of secondhand cars give Richard a ring on Monday 0117 9579708 and he will help you, and go through current stock and new stock coming in.

Bags they ve got cats that criminals steal so nooooo

Regarding budget, I was told I'd be able to get a little run around for around the 1K mark but that does seem pretty difficult! I can spend more if needed.

Was just going to say the same, might have the odd water leak now and then but other than that totally bullet proof, I work at a main dealer and we get 15 year old Yaris in with no issues at all, solid cars. Avoid Vauxhall And Gord in my opinion. (Worked for Ford for 14 years)